I've Never
by Moosagi
Summary: If you've ever played the drinking game, I've Never, then you know how much trouble it can get you into. But can it also help to fix things that were once broken? MK
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own Sea Patrol. I merely use the characters for my own enjoyment.

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Mike let out a laugh as he raised the shot to his mouth, laughing as Buffer kept his lowered. There were cheers as he raised his arm, indicating to the barman to bring another round over. Charge lifted his beer and leant over to Buffer, tipping his glass in the direction of the embarrassed sailor, beer slopping over the side.

"Right Buff," he slurred, "Spill."

Buffer shook his head, a smirk crossing his face as he watched his mates slop their beers everywhere.

"Buff," Mike pushed, "Rules r' 'ules. I 'rder you t'spill!"

At the sound of the word order coming from his captain's mouth, he knew he couldn't keep it in much longer.

"Okay. It was at schoolies. We were all drunk and this really hot looking girl said to me and my mate that she would come back to our apartment if we kissed. We did and she buggered off."

Roars were let off as the guys erupted into laughter, the thought of the manly Buffer kissing another guy too hard to handle.

ET let out a shriek before holding his shot up, "I've got one!"

The shout silenced the others, all hands moving to the replenished shots on the table.

ET continued, "I've never done it with a Navy bird."

Six shots were raised and sculled whilst one remained on the table. All eyes locked onto the still full shot, eyes moving up to the embarrassed captain sitting behind the offending shot. Sly grins crossed the faces of the crew sitting around the bar table, the thought of finally being able to get some dirt on their captain to tempting to resist.

"Sir," Spider slurred, his head hanging dangerously low near the table, "You'urn."

Mike shook his head, picking up the shot before sculling it, the burning pain flowing down his throat a lot less worse than the pain he knew would come from the yelling he would get if he spilled.

"'S toooooooo late!" RO erupted, holding the beer up above his head and spilling it over those seated around him.

"Rules r' rules Boss!" ET smirked, "Shot has to be tak'n when the question is called, not 30 sec'ns later."

Mike let out a sigh, trying to stop his mouth from running away from him, like it normally did when he was drunk. There was shouting around him, and beer being thrown over his clothes as the crew waved drinks around him. He tried to remember the reason why he decided to play this game anyway but for the life of him, he couldn't recall what made him.

He held up his hands, defeated, "Okay! Was 5 years 'go. Was teaching a course. There was this one girl…. Really good looking…"

There was a cheer from the boys, all cheering on the captain.

Mike laughed before continuing, "Ended up having some drinks with her and well… things went from one thing to another and well…"

There was a cheer as the boys raised their drinks, loudly cheering on the boss and his endeavours with the female kind. Mike laughed before indicating for another round of shots, instantly regretting it at the words that came from Swain's mouth.

"I've never wanted to fraternise with any of the females on our boat," he shouted, raising his shot glass and sculling it. This time, 4 shot glasses remained on the table. There was a raucous cheer from the remaining 3, Charge, Buffer and Swain, at the embarrassed looks on ET, RO, Spider and Mike's faces.

"Kay," Charge called, "Spill!"

RO went first the name slipping from his lips before he could stop it, "Bomber."

At the name, Spider's head shot to look at him, "No way! Bomber's mine."

All eyes were on the impending fight that was arising between the two sailors, and Mike, thinking he could get away before they asked him. No such luck. As he stood up, he tripped on the bar stool, his unsteady legs getting tangled up in the long steel legs. He found himself lying on the floor, his eyes gazing up into the concerned faces of his crew. Unable to help himself, he burst out into laughter, the alcohol in his system numbing any of the pain he might have felt. The crew joined in and it wasn't long before a couple of female voices cut in.

"Sir!"

Mike tilted his head back, looking at Kate's concerned face. He smiled as he managed to get a good view up her skirt. He started laughing before shouting out a chant he remembered one of his nieces teaching him.

"I see London, I see France… I see Kate's underpants!" He started shrieking with laughter, the next words slipping out before he could stop them.  
"And it's not the first time either!"

The laughter from the boys was silenced instantly as they realised what Mike had just said. All eyes were moved from the still laughing captain to the stormy faced XO. They all started to move, knowing the impending fight that would arise, and none wanting to be around to experience it.

Kate could not believe what she had just heard. She leant down, grabbing Mike's arm and pulling him unsteadily to his feet.

"You're coming with me," she muttered, her voice tense.

Mike had no idea what was going on, the final few shots he had taken going to his head. He did notice the growing distance between him and his final drink though, and not wanting to waste his money, he pulled himself in the opposite direction to the way he was being pulled, lunging for the final shot. He grabbed it and sculled it before Kate's hand wrapped around it, taking it from his own hand and slamming it down onto the table. He turned to look at her, a goofy smile on his face, completely oblivious to what he had done just before.

Kate just shook her head, "Come on!" She grabbed his arm and yanked him out the door, making sure he didn't trip on his drunken feet. When they reached her car, he turned and smiled at her.

"Am I coming home with yooouuu?" he slurred, his eyes hopeful as he stared at her.

Kate just threw him a blank stare, "I'm taking you home."

The drive was silent except for the snores coming from the passed out figure in the passenger seat. Kate glanced, noticing the way his head was lolling around on the seat, the peaceful expression on his face tearing at her heart. She turned back to face the road, knowing she couldn't have these thoughts.

She pulled him out of her car, trying to get him to at least wake up so she could move his bulky form up to the steps.

"Mike," she groaned, her knees buckling under his weight.

He let out a mumble, his eyes opening briefly as he stumbled up the stairs. She leant him against the doorframe, hoping that he would pull his keys out. No such luck. She let out a sigh as she moved closer towards him, her hands slipping into his pockets to pull out his keys. He murmured something, but she wasn't able to pick it up.

Kate finally made it to his bedroom, pushing him onto his bed. There was no way that she was changing him into his pyjamas. It was his fault for getting himself this drunk and she was not about to make things awkward for her. She turned to walk out, not noticing Mike moving on the bed behind her. She was surprised as a pair of hands wrapped around her waist and pulled her back onto the bed. She looked up into the glazed eyes of Mike, knowing that this was so wrong.

"Don't leave yet Kate. I shouldn't have let you go. It was so wrong," he slurred.

Tears gathered in her eyes before she shook her head.

"You're drunk and you can't say this."

She pushed him off her before standing up and walking out as quickly as possible, her only hope was that he would not remember this in the morning.


	2. The Aftermath

Nikki walked into the bridge almost instantly noticing the absence of any of the senior sailors. Her eyebrows crumpled into confusion as she tried to think where abouts they would be. She turned to the sailor seated in front of the engines compartment.

"Jackson, where is Charge?"

The sailor looked up at Nikki's question, his brow furrowing in thought as he tried to recall the last place he saw Charge.

"I believe he is down in the mess, Ma'am"  
Nikki nodded her head, "Okay thanks." She turned and headed down the steps of the bridge to the mess.

As she approached the mess, she instantly picked up on how quiet it was. She didn't know exactly how much they had actually drunk last night, but judging but how quiet it was, she assumed it was a lot. Her suspicions were confirmed as she opened the door to the mess to be met with six pairs of bloodshot eyes. She struggled to hold back the laugh that was rising at the sight of the six very hungover sailors in front of her. She shook her head.

"Exactly how much did you boys drink last night?"  
There were murmurs and shrugging of the shoulders, but no one was able to state exactly how much was consumed.

"And, how much do you boys remember," she continued to pry, knowing that Kate would want to know.

"Not much," Buffer muttered.

There were murmurs of agreement amongst the boys. Nikki let out a sigh of relief, knowing that the news might be able to settle Kate that little bit. She knew that Kate would want to talk things over with the boss in private and it would help if the crew didn't remember.

"Although I remember something about underpants," Spider said, his head rising off his crossed arms resting on the table.  
Nikki stiffened. This was definitely not what she wanted to hear.

"Yeah," pitched in ET, "Underpants is stuck in my head for some reason."

She saw RO's face screw up and she knew it was all over.

"I see London, I see France," he started.

The rest of the boy's joined in, their shout getting loud, "I see Kate's underpants!"

There were groans as the loud noise hurt their already pounding heads, but the damage was already done. She knew, that because they remembered, it would be spread throughout the boat like wildfire about the boss's previous relationship with the XO. She had been privy to the information the night before as Kate told her after the run in with Mike at the pub. She turned to the crew and put on her best officer voice, knowing that they would have to obey.

"There is not to be one word about the X's underpants or the boss's comments last night muttered on this boat. Understand."  
Murmurs of 'Yes Ma'am' echoed around the room before heads were lowered disappointedly to the table again.

Nikki just hoped she had been able to stop an impending disaster occurring onboard.

Kate stepped onboard the ship, saluting the ensign as she crossed the ramp. Whilst her face portrayed that of a calm and composed officer, her insides contradicted it. With every look a sailor gave her, or a greeting she received, her heart would start pounding or her stomach would clench in nervousness. She knew that there was no way that the boys would have kept their mouths shut about last nights incident and what made it worse was the personal nature of Patrol Boats that would mean everything would spread a whole lot quicker. She knew she just had to remain calm and professional and everything would work out for the better… or that's what she hoped. She walked into her cabin, throwing her belongings onto her rack. She pulled out a pair of overalls to change into and turned to walk into the bathroom when the door burst open. She turned, surprised at the sudden arrival.

"Kate! They remember!"

Nikki's exasperated cry made Kate's stomach plummet, conformation of the news she'd been dreading making her day a whole lot worse.

"Everything?" she said, her voice coming out in a squeak.

Nikki nodded her head, a sympathetic grin crossing her face, "I did kind of order them not to say anything to anyone. I think they will listen."

Kate nodded her head, feeling some sort of relief. Although the dread returned when the thought occurred to her that she still had to deal with Mike.

Mike let out a groan, rolling over to reach for his phone to stop the deafening noise that was his alarm tone. He flailed around, hoping to stop the song before it reached the particularly high note he knew was coming. It was too late. He grabbed at his pillow, clutching it around his ears as he tried to muffle the song. He was going to kill whoever was the one who changed his alarm tone to 'Climb Every Mountain'. Finally silence surrounded him and he let out a sigh of relief before opening his eyes. He let out a groan as the sun shone in on him. As he looked around, he realised he was at his place. He had no idea how he had gotten there, he couldn't even remember leaving the pub. The last he could remember was agreeing to a game of I've Never. He grabbed his phone and turned his alarm off before it could go off again. His eyes widened as he looked at the time, noticing he had to be on the ship 2 hours ago. Whoever it was that brought him home last night obviously had no idea what time he had to be at work… or was extremely annoyed at him. He sat up, the stench of tequila, rum and beer overwhelming him. He clenched at his stomach, keeping his mouth shut as he stumbled out of his bed and towards the shower. Today was going to be a long day.

Kate stood up in the bridge, talking a few things over with Nikki when a snicker from a couple of sailors caught their attention. They turned to see three sailor's point and snickering at something down on deck.

"Is there something wrong sailors?" Kate questioned.

At the sound of her voice, all three snapped back to attention, a sheepish look on their faces.

"Well Ma'am, the Boss just stepped onboard. And he's really looking a bit worse for wear."

Kate's face paled at the thought of facing Mike, but snickers were heard from the rest of the crew in the bridge. Everyone knew that the captain was normally reserved when it came to drinks at the pub and it had gotten around quickly that he'd had a big night last night. It had been kept quiet exactly what had happened though, as Nikki had ordered.

"Ma'am?"

Kate's attention turned to the sailor sitting at the helm.

"When we're late, we always get reprimanded by you. The boss is almost 4 hours late, so does that mean he's going to get reprimanded?"  
It had never happened before, Mike being late, so no one knew exactly what would happen.

Kate just turned, not wanting to answer what seemed to be a silly question. But the look on her face said more than words could.

Mike stepped into the bridge, hoping that he didn't look as seedy as he did when he woke up. But from the looks the crew was giving him as he walked in, he knew he probably looked worse. At the sight of Kate though, he brightened up, much like he did every other day. He walked over to her, a smile instantly springing to his face.

"Morning X," he said, keeping his voice chirpy.

She turned and stared at him a moment before replying with a quick, "Sir."

She turned her attention back to the helsman, instructing him to take the boat out. Mike's brow furrowed in confusion. He was sure Spider was supposed to be on the helm this morning.

"X. Why isn't Spider on the helm?"

She didn't turn to face him, replying with her back turned to him. "Sir, Spider is still incapacitated with alcohol and I highly doubt he is any fit state to drive a 180 foot Navy boat," her reply was icy and he knew that she wasn't happy with him.

He decided instead to ignore it, knowing how she got with her moods.

"I'll take over now X," he said, moving over to his chair.

"Sir? Is that a good idea? Are you sure that you wouldn't prefer to be recuperating from your night last night?"

Mike stopped. Kate was never one to question him as she did just now. She would normally put in her two cents, but discreetly and never embarrass him as she did just now. He decided he had to deal with this now.

"X, is there something I have done to offend you?" he asked bluntly and honestly, something he could also do.

The bridge went silent at the question, the crew knowing that there was some form of an argument coming up. All eyes were now on the pair standing in the middle. Mike noticed as Kate tensed, her entire body stiffening as she processed the question. She turned to face him, her eyes meeting his with an ice-cold glare. She wasn't going to confront him though, not in the bridge.

"No sir. Not at all."  
Mike wasn't giving in though. He wanted to know what it was he had done to offend her so badly. "Then why this attitude towards me?"

Neither had noticed the arrival of Charge and Buffer in the room, who had witnessed the beginnings of the confrontation between the pair. Both noticed as well that Mike obviously did not recall anything of last night and Charge felt that he should let the captain know what it was that he was exactly getting into. The way he went about it could have been done better though.

A sly grin crossed his face. "I see London, I see France, I see…"  
"Charge!"

Kate was quick to interrupt, knowing exactly what would happen if she allowed him to continue. But the damage was done. Mike's face had paled as he recalled exactly what had occurred the night before and as he remembered what it was he had blurted to half the ships crew… and the big mouthed ones at that. He looked at her, his eyes conveying to her just how sorry he was. She wasn't dealing with it though.

"Kate," he said quietly, taking a step towards her.

She shook her head, "Sorry Sir. I'm needing down below."  
Before he could say another word, she was out of the bridge and out of his sight.

It was days before Mike was able to get Kate on her own, and even then he had to order her to follow him to his cabin. She tried to come up with an excuse, saying that she should remain on the bridge, but Mike remained adamant and eventually she followed. As he closed the door behind her, neither was able to ignore the tension or the awkwardness that arose in the room.

"You took me home from the pub, didn't you?" he questioned, breaking the silence.

She nodded her head, "How'd you figure it out."

He smirked at her, "Only you would have 'The Sound of Music' on your phone… and purposely set the most annoying song as your alarm."  
She shrugged her shoulders, making a move for the door. He stopped her though, stepping between her and the door, the close proximity between them suffocating the two of them.

"Had to make sure you would wake up," she whispered, his scent teasing her sense and causing all coherent thought to leave her mind.

He looked at her, his eyes flickering to her lips which were pursed, teasing him.

"Only 2 hours late," he replied.

She looked up at him, their eyes locking on each other, both feeling the tension between them increasing and unable to avoid it. He didn't know what came over him but he leant down, gently brushing his lips against hers. At first, it was just a light kiss, a gentle teaser of what both had missed out on. It was enough to spark the passion and desire both had buried for months. She leant in, deepening the kiss, pushing herself against him, not knowing what it was coming over her. He wrapped his arms around her, unable to ignore the feeling of her body against his, or what she was able to do to him. Her hands moved to his hair, tugging at his head as she nipped at his lip. He groaned, pulling back before she made him bleed.

"You're still angry," he whispered, his lips moving to the exposed section of her neck. His words seemed to penetrate the fog of her brain and she pulled back, pushing at him none too gently so he fell back against the door. They stared at each other, their eyes dark with desire, their chests heaving as they tried to get their breaths back. He could still see the anger in her eyes, could see that he was not even close to making up for his actions last night. However, it was as though there was something between them, drawing them closer. She took two quick steps, her body pressing against him as she pressed her lips against his again, pouring all her anger and frustrations into it. He grabbed at her, his hands pulling at the rough material to bring her closer. He let out a groan as her lips left his, slowly moving down his throat.

"Still angry?"

His hand tightened about her hip as she nipped him none too gently, giving him the answer he needed. He swung them around, pinning her between him and the door, one hand leaving her hip to gently tug at her face to bring her lips back to his. His lips had barely even touched hers before she pushed him off again, her eyes wide as she turned and fled. He ran out after her, calling out to her as she disappeared off down to corridor. He let out a sigh, running a hand through his hair as he stepped back into his cabin, trying to process what it was that had just happened.

Kate threw open the door to her cabin, quickly shutting it behind her as she fell back against it. Her legs gave out on her and she crumpled to the floor. She could still feel his lips on hers, his hands gripping at her waist, his body pressed against hers. She didn't know what came over her though. It was as though all her anger, all her feelings were directed towards him in the wrong way. She wanted to be angry at him, to hate him. She wanted to punish him in so many ways. She let out a sigh, her head falling into her arms. Everything was so screwed up. She jumped at a knock at the door, her heart beating at the thought that it might be Mike.

"Kate?"

Nikki's concerned voice did something to calm her beating heart and she shifted to allow her to open the door.

Nikki's eyes widened at the sight of Kate sitting on the floor, her lips slightly swollen and bruised, her hair in a mess and her overalls crumpled.

"Kate? What happened?"

Kate just shook her head, still trying to get through her mind what it was that went on back there.

"I don't know," she replied, her voice still barely a whisper. "One minute we were talking and then the next… we just couldn't keep off each other. I was so angry though but I couldn't help myself."

Nikki's eyes widened at Kate's confession, "You mean you and the boss… kissed? Here? One the boat?"

Kate nodded her head, not knowing what else to say.

Nikki just stared at Kate a moment before lowering herself down next to Kate.

"Maybe, there is just so much emotion and tension between the two of you that it was inevitable. Maybe you think you're angry, but you're trying to cover up what you really feel."

Kate raised her head, her eyes meeting the understanding ones of the younger woman. She wanted to deny it, to say that everything Nikki said was not true. But deep down she knew it was. She knew that what was keeping it all back was the fear of being hurt again by him.

Nikki picked up on the emotions flicking across Kate's face.

"You have to trust him. Trust that if he does hurt you, he doesn't mean it. Trust that he'll make up for it. Without trust Kate, there is no point. Look at me and Josh. When I didn't trust him, things were really bad. But I put aside my fears and I trusted him."

Kate shook her head, "But ET has never actually hurt you like Mike has done."

Nikki just wrapped her arms around Kate, knowing that in good time Kate would make the right choice.

Mike walked back into the bridge, drawing the attention of everyone. He absently noticed that RO had joined the crew assembled in the bridge, but most of the senior sailors were still missing besides Charge and Buffer. The thought moved on as he sat in his seat, his eyes staring absently out at the ocean. His thoughts turned to what had just happened down in his cabin. It made no sense. She'd been avoiding him and her attitude towards him was one of pure loathing. It made no sense that she would literally jump him all of a sudden. He let out a sigh, resting his head on his arm.

Charge looked at Buffer, who was standing near RO, and who currently had a scrutinising gaze on his face. If he didn't know any better, he would say Buffer was trying to concentrate on something miniscule on the captain. He left his area and walked over, nudging Buffer with his arm.

"What's up?"

Buffer turned, a confused look in his eyes before he turned his attention back to Mike.

"I swear," he started, "There is a bruise on the boss's neck. It looks almost like a…"

Charge noticed it and cut in, "A hickey!"

Their eyes widened in realisation.

"That wasn't there this morning," Buffer quickly added.

"But who…" Charge didn't need to finish the question, already knowing who was responsible for it. There was only one female onboard that had spent any time with the captain in private and no one was willing to question her. They would rather continue with speculation.

"We should say something," RO said, knowing that it wasn't right for the captain to be walking around with a hickey on his neck.

Buffer nodded his head, "True."  
He walked over, making sure that Mike saw him before he mentioned anything.

"What's up Buff?" Mike questioned, his eyes not leaving the ocean.

Buffer glanced sideways, the bruise much more pronounced up close. "Ah, Sir. You have a bruise on your neck," he said, trying to keep it discrete.

Mike stiffened, unaware that Kate had left a mark. He knew he was caught out and tried to think of an excuse.

"I ah…. Knocked it on the shelf in my cabin," he stuttered, hoping it would pass.

He saw the amused look in Buffer's eyes and knew that it didn't, but it was said loud enough to discourage the rest of the crew from coming up with rumours.

That night, Mike sat at the desk in his cabin, his eyes staring absently at the computer screen in front of him. He hadn't been able to tear his thoughts away from Kate and what had occurred that morning almost right where he was sitting. Just as the thought arose, there was a knock at his door. He turned to see Kate standing there awkwardly.

"X."

She took that as a cue to step in, shutting the door as she did so. She knew it was a risk, but it was she was willing to take because the likelihood of the crew overhearing was higher than her losing her self control again.

"I wanted to talk about this morning," she said quietly, hoping he wouldn't move from the chair. It made things a whole lot easier.

He nodded his head, agreeing that the air needed to be cleared between them.

"I'm still angry about what happened at the pub last night…"  
"I know Kate and I'm sorry but…"  
She cut him off, "No. Let me finish. What happened this morning, was a mistake. But what you did last night at the pub is unforgivable. You told half of the crew about us! Not only that but you embarrassed not only me, but yourself with that ridiculous comment about underpants!"

"Kate…"  
"Just stay quiet," she interrupted, her voice louder than she intended. She knew she was disrespecting her commanding officer, but those rules had been thrown out the window more than once in the last few days. "You had absolutely no right to say those things. You had absolutely no right to then go and kiss me this morning! You had absolutely no right to leave me like you did that morning, with nothing more than a short note of explanation as to why you left."

He stared up at her shocked, unable to understand how that fitted into what had occurred in the last few days.

She kept going though, "You had no right to decide what was best for me. You had no right to make that decision and not ask for my opinion." Tears started to rise as the hurt and pain she had suffered all those years ago arose, "You had no right to cause me all that pain! And then to rub it in my face with Ursula! You have no right…" The tears started to flow as she let out a sob, unable to hold back all the emotions that were running rampant through her.

He stood up, reaching out for her and pulling her into his arms, unable to think of any other way to comfort her. She tried to resist, to pull away from him like she should. But the feeling of his arms around her and the warmth of his body was too much. She relaxed against him as she allowed the tears to flow, to let all the hurt and pain she suffered out. He held her, whispering sweet nothings to try and comfort her. He knew, right at that moment, that there was no way things could ever remain professional between them. He felt too much for her and he knew that he would never be able to deny his feelings again. He let her go slowly, reaching out with his hand to clutch her chin. He lowered his head, moving in to kiss her, only to have her pull away from him.

She shook her head, "I can't do this. Not yet."

And with those words she turned and left.

The boys sat around a table, watching Mike sitting on his own, now onto about his tenth beer and third shot. They knew that they should be with him, watching that he didn't drown in his sorrows, but no one really knew what to say. Although one or two of them had been in similar situations, it had never been with a crewmember.

Mike let out a sigh, indicating to the bartender he wanted another one. As he tipped his almost empty glass over, the bartender shook his head.

"Mate, I think you've had enough."

Mike narrowed his eyes, reaching forward to grab at the shirt the bartender was wearing.

"I'll tell you when I've had enough," he said, his voice low.

The bartender grabbed at Mike's hand and pulled it off his shirt.

"Leave now with some dignity or I'll have you kicked out."

Mike stared for a moment before nodding his head, "Fine. Have it your way then."

He turned and stumbled out, ignoring the few crew watching him.

He didn't know what made him head for her house, or how he even got there. All he knew was that he found himself at her door, banging on it and demanding to be let in.

Kate shot up as she heard the banging on her door, wondering who at this ungodly hour would want to come in. But at the shouts of her name, she knew. She quickly climbed out of bed before rushing for the front door, wanting to shut him up before he woke up her neighbours. She ripped the door open, causing Mike, who had been leaning against it, to lose his balance and stumble forward. She caught him, instantly picking up the stench of alcohol. She shook her head.

"I've never seen you this drunk before," she muttered.

He looked up at her, his eyes seeming to clear for a moment before glazing over again.

"Pretty," he muttered, running a hand along her face.

Her eyes slipped shut at the soft caress before she remembered just how drunk he was. She wrapped an arm around his waist before walking him towards the spare bedroom.

"You can stay here, tonight only though."

He mumbled something incomprehensible and she just shook her head. She knew she would have to get him something to wear. She racked her brain before remembering the few pieces of clothing she had stashed in the back of her closet. She let him fall onto the spare bed.

"I'll be back in a moment," she said quickly, throwing a look at him as his eyes started to slip shut. She allowed a small smile to cross her face before walking to her room. She was digging through the back of her cupboard, pulling out the spare t-shirt and shorts she had of his when she felt someone pull her from behind. She let out a gasp of surprise, which he quickly silenced by planting his lips on hers. At first she tried to resist, the taste and smell of alcohol on him overwhelming her senses. But as his hands started to wander, she lost herself in the feeling. She knew that being the sober one, she should stop this, that she shouldn't let it go too far but she was so absorbed in the feeling of him against her that she couldn't. Nikki's words ran through her head from earlier, "You have to trust him. Trust that if he does hurt you, he doesn't mean it. Trust that he'll make up for it. Without trust Kate, there is no point." She let herself trust him, knowing it would be worth it.

Mike let out a groan the next morning at the pounding in his head, but as he opened his eyes, he was met with a very different sight then the last time he woke up hungover. Lying next to him, her hair framing her face, was Kate, her face the picture of serenity as she slept. A smile crossed his face as he recalled what happened that night. She said that she could trust him, that this time they would do things properly. He tightened his arm around her, pulling her closer to him. He heard her sigh softly before she opened her eyes to stare up at him. The smile on his face brought a smile to hers and she leant up to kiss him softly.

"Do you remember what happened last night?"  
He chuckled, "Like I could forget." He ran a finger along her cheekbone, gently brushing a few stray strands of hair out of her face.

"Do you remember what I said last night," he whispered, his eyes getting lost in hers.

She nodded her head, "A declaration of love is hard to miss."

He smiled at her, gently pulling her head down to kiss her gently,

"I also said I would never leave you again," he whispered against her lips. "And I mean it."

She smiled against his lips before kissing him long and hard, "Guess I'm stuck with you then."

She let out a shriek as he flipped her before tickling her mercilessly, their mingling cries and laughter filling the morning air.


End file.
